Look at these babiessss! Aren’t they gorgeous? I met them a few months ago at a Friends for Life adoption event in Houston. Friends for Life is one of only two LEED-certified no kill animal shelters in Texas. That means they are a certified green building 🌱 You definitely get a different feel when you walk through their doors, and I don’t just mean aesthetics. First of all, it’s quiet! Granted, the main part of the shelter open to the public only has about eight to ten dogs, but normally shelters are extremely loud and chaotic. Friends for Life, on the other hand, has a calm and peaceful vibe that is nice for visitors, but even nicer for the animals that live there.

I visited twice in one week, if that tells you anything! Check out the adorable cats and dogs that I met during my visits and all the wonderful facts I learned about this progressive no kill shelter 🐈🐕

Animal rescue is something very near and dear to my heart, and dog rescue is something that I’ve been lucky enough to actively participate in. It’s gut wrenching, heartbreaking, stressful, tragic, inspiring, and extremely rewarding. It’s taught me that every life counts and every life is worth saving and fighting for.

I want to tell you a story about a very special dog named Pretty Girl. She’s taught me a lot and I’m very proud of her. If you look closely at the photo above, you’ll notice that Pretty Girl is missing one of her front legs. This by no means defines her, it merely makes her extra cute & unique.

If you’ve ever rescued, adopted, or loved a dog, maybe you can relate to this post and the struggles I went through for this girl. Regardless, I think everyone can relate to fighting for something they believe in and for someone they love. This “someone” just happens to have a shiny fur coat and a wet nose.

Look at those eyes. Soulful, huh? And those cropped ears. Both features tell the tale of a hard life full of pain and sadness. Yet this sweet girl, Catherine, was always so sweet and outgoing. She didn’t let the fact that she was passed around from owner to owner, dumped at the shelter, unable to find her forever home, and goodness knows what else stop her from giving up. This is why shelter dogs are the best. They are resilient. They endure terrible, heartbreaking circumstances and yet they continue to overcome. And they never stop sharing their love. Most humans I know are incapable of doing this. For me, shelter dogs represent and embody true love. I never grew up with dogs or spent time near them, and honestly, at times I preferred not to be near them. I mean, the drooling and barking and jumping on me – no thanks. But after working at shelters and observing these dogs firsthand, I immediately fell deep into love with their personalities and their stories. I saw them as furry little people, each with their own quirks, likes, dislikes, needs, strengths, and weaknesses. And the fact that they were shelter dogs as opposed to coming from a puppy mill or breeder, just amplified these endearing qualities and made me love them even more.

This is Horatio, one of the shelter dogs that I fostered for a couple weeks. He was so skinny when I first saw him. And as the weeks went by, I noticed that he wasn’t gaining any weight. In fact, it didn’t look like he was eating at all. I decided to bring him home and see if he gained weight. And he did! And my two female pitties absolutely adored him. The first night I brought him home, I had to lift him onto the bed because he was too terrified to move, and my other foster dog, Pretty Girl, started rolling around and stretching out next to him to try to impress him. It was amazing to see her react that way because Pretty Girl came from a bad situation too and was very introverted, yet she connected with Horatio and he brought out the best in her. Poor Horatio was probably the most scared dog I’ve ever met. He was scared to go into my yard to use the bathroom. I’d have to walk him out on a leash, and then he’d be scared to come back in. I don’t know anything about his history, except that my shelter rescued him off the kill list at the city shelter. I’ve always wondered what horrendous things must have happened to him to make him so petrified. He flinched every time I came near him, even to pet him. And yet Horatio was always a gentle creature.

I think most people agree that in general, we all like animals and we all want to help them. Working at animal shelters, I got to witness firsthand how amazing and kind some people can be when it comes to helping a cat or dog in need. However, I also witnessed that many people don’t know how to help or don’t think to in the first place. Unfortunately, humans have become so conditioned to believe that we matter more than our furry counterparts that we’re used to seeing animals lying in the road that were run over, we’re used to hearing about all the healthy companion animals that are “euthanized” in shelters every year, we’re used to hunting and killing animals for entertainment, and we’re used to eating animals without giving it a second thought. Kinda crazy when you stop and think about it, right? I mean, we’ve been controlling animals minds and bodies for thousands of years without ever really wondering what the true consequence of that is. We’re finally beginning to see some of those severe consequences.

What’s really going on?

Studies show that this current generation of children in America are the first that will shorter lives than their parents. That seems to sort of go against evolution… And it’s all due to the dairy, meat, gluten, and processed foods they are consuming. And it’s spreading across the world. Asia always had the lowest rates of cancer and heart disease because it’s a traditionally vegetarian area. But as soon as they began adopting Western eating styles, their rates of cancer and heart disease steadily rose.

Another scary fact is that we are running out of water, as well as farm-able land. Why? Because of factory farming. Eating cheap meat and dairy has become so popular that this world must sustain the billions of animals that produce this meat and dairy. That means water. Animals consume a lot of water. They also consume a lot of food. These animals are fed corn and grain (not what they’re supposed to be eating in the first place) and corn and grain need a place to grow. That means cutting down the rainforests and other natural habitats to grow these crops. Statistics shows that if we got rid of factory farming and instead used those resources to grow fruits and vegetables and healthy grains, we could easily feed all the starving people in the world. In fact, we would never have starving people. Oh, and animals on factory farms emit more methane gases than all the cars in the world combined.

That’s all the bad news. The good news is, we can do things in our daily lives to make a difference. And if everybody does little things that make a difference, then we can begin to reverse all the damage that’s been done and literally save the world. If we could save the world and also spare animals from the intense suffering they experience at our hands, why wouldn’t we?

HEY THERE! I’M JILLIAN.

I live along the border of Mexico in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas and create cruelty-free recipes that are delicious! I'm here to show you that it's easy to follow a plant based lifestyle. Not only are the health and beauty benefits noticeable, but it creates a more sustainable planet and keeps our animal friends safe & happy. I also love books, music, dark chocolate, and the great outdoors. LEARN MORE…

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